Elementary, Dear Data (episode)
The Enterprise computer creates a sentient holodeck character inside Data's Sherlock Holmes program. Summary Geordi La Forge invites Data to take part in a Sherlock Holmes holographic story. Data, who has memorized all of Arthur Conan Doyle's stories of Sherlock Holmes, instantly recognizes the story after only the first few moments, and immediately solves the case. La Forge abruptly freezes the program and storms out of the holodeck. Talking over the incident in Ten Forward, La Forge and Data are overheard by Dr. Katherine Pulaski, who states that Data is incapable of solving a real mystery. Data takes this as a challenge, and invites Pulaski to join La Forge and him in another Holmes story. This time, the computer is instructed to create a new mystery in the Holmes style. This is less than successful, however, because the computer merely combines elements of the existing Holmes stories in a way that Data is again easily able to solve. Geordi makes another try, however, and carefully instructs the computer to create a story and character capable of defeating Data. The new program runs and the three are off on their new adventure. The story takes an unexpected twist when Dr. Pulaski is actually kidnapped by the holographic character Professor James Moriarty, who was imbued with a measure of consciousness and witnessed the use of the holodeck arch. Moriarty desires to learn more, and makes it easy for Data to track him and his hostage. Upon handing Data a hand-drawn picture of the ''Enterprise''-D, Data immediately leaves the holodeck with La Forge following in confusion. Meanwhile, Moriarty learns a great deal about the Enterprise from the computer, and somehow constructs a crude device that transfers attitude control to the holodeck. He uses this several times, causing the ship to shudder uncontrollably. Meeting with Captain Picard and the senior officers, La Forge figures out that it was his instructions to create an adversary capable of defeating Data, not Holmes, that initiated the holodeck override control and is preventing them from ending the holodeck program. Picard decides that he must personally meet with Moriarty, whom he confronts, but who is adamant that he is sentient and self-aware, and should be allowed to continue to exist. After Moriarty releases Dr. Pulaski and returns control of the ship to Captain Picard, Picard explains that the ship's computer can store Moriarty's character indefinitely, and that the Federation would work on a way to bring Moriarty out of the holodeck. Moriarty's program is stored and ended. Log Entries Captain's Log, Stardate 42286.3. We have arrived on station at coordinates 3629 by 584 three days early for our rendezvous with the USS ''Victory. There is nothing to do now but hold this position and wait.'' Background Information * TNG: "Ship in a Bottle" is a sequel to this episode. * Wesley Crusher does not appear in this episode * When Dr. Moriarty hands his sketch of the Enterprise to Data, Data quickly storms out of Moriarty's lair, and off of the holodeck. But when he and La Forge are off of the holodeck, he is still holding Moriarty's sketch of the Enterprise. The sketch (which was created on the holodeck) should have dematerialized once he stepped off the holodeck. Furthermore, when La Forge turns the drawing over for us to see, the perspective is such that La Forge would have been looking at the drawing upside down. ** There have been mentions of a sort of "replicator" or "matter generator" being intergrated with the holodeck so minuscule objects like the sketch that Data took with him out of the holodeck would not disintegrate. * The producers, believing that the Sherlock Holmes character was public domain, were notified by the estate of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that they still retained the copyright on the character, however, they allowed this episode to air because they believed that the show had done the character justice. However, litigation would delay the sequel episode, "Ship in a Bottle", for nearly four years. Links and References Guest Stars *Diana Muldaur as Katherine Pulaski *Daniel Davis as James Moriarty *Alan Shearman as Inspector Lestrade *Biff Manard as Ruffian *Diz White as Prostitute *Anne Elizabeth Ramsay as Ensign Clancy *Richard Merson as Pie Man Co-Starring *Guy Vardaman as Darien Wallace (uncredited) References 221B Baker Street; ales; Alpha Centauri; Arch; attitude control; Bohemia; Bristol; Bruce-Partington plans; "cogito, ergo sum"; Dartmoor; Delphi; detective; Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan; emerald; Flaxville Meat Market; holodeck; London; mortality fail-safe; Oracle of Delphi; override protocol; particle beam; pie; police ; prostitution; Queen Victoria; Red-Headed League; Reichenbach Falls; Rule's; sentience; Holmes, Sherlock; shillings; "shipshape in Bristol fashion"; snake; stouts; Tottenham Court Road; Tovey News; transporter; tuppence; Valley of Fear, The; ''Victory'', USS; warehouse; Watson, John; Whitaker's Almanack; Wilson, Jabez; violin; Von Ormstein, Wilhelm Gottsreich Sigismond; Zimbata Category:TNG episodes de:Sherlock Data Holmes es:Elementary, Dear Data fr:Elementary, Dear Data nl:Elementary, Dear Data